Pupils collect free iPads ahead of fire-break lockdown
Rydal Penrhos has issued free iPads to pupils for their remote learning during the “fire-break” lockdown announced by the Welsh Government.
The school has led the way with safety measures during the coronavirus pandemic, providing a safe and happy environment for Prep and Senior pupils to get the most out of their education. In addition, Rydal Penrhos’ management team have been committed to putting a concise and structured plan in place for the second lockdown.
There was plenty of excitement in the air as Year 9-13 pupils visited the school briefly in their own group bubbles to collect their iPads under the supervision of staff. These will be a critical aid to their learning at home during the first week following the half-term break.
This is part of the school’s substantial financial investment in IT this summer, which saw state-of-the-art servers installed, a newer version of iSAMS to improve parent-teacher communications and free iPads for each pupil from Year 3 to 13, together with an electronic pencil for the younger years.
These iPads are intended for daily use both during school lessons and for homework tasks when pupils are in school as well as coming into their own when they are in lockdown.
All teachers will also have an identical iPad and the intention is that during the “fire break “ period online learning is set to be structured as much like a normal school day as is possible, to ensure consistent academic provision despite COVID-19.
John Waszek, Executive Principal of Rydal Penrhos, said: “We believe this investment will have a marked improvement on the educational opportunities for Rydal Penrhos pupils and on their personal and academic progress."